We have two blockbuster men’s semifinal matches awaiting us at Wimbledon this year. Will Novak Djokovic continue his march towards an eighth title at the All England Club (and fifth in a row)? Can Jannik Sinner finally stop him? Our writers, as always, share their thoughts on the match. We also have predictions for the other semifinal, between Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev. Predicting this match are Jack Edward, Damian Kust, Jordan Reynolds, Andreas Pelekis, Manuel Traquete, and Jakub Bobro. Who do you think will win?
Wimbledon Men’s Semifinal Predictions
Novak Djokovic vs Jannik Sinner
Jack:
Jannik Sinner went two sets up against Novak Djokovic at last year’s Wimbledon. When the Italian is at his best, he can blast the racket out of anyone’s hands. He’s one of the few players that can generate extreme pace off of a low contact point and has the return skills to cause the Serb a bit of bother.
Djokovic won that match, however, and it was all down to his serving performance. He wasn’t broken in the final three sets of the match whilst Sinner’s serve was leaking enough opportunities for the defending champion to sink his teeth into.
Not much has changed since then. Djokovic should still be able to lockdown if he has to and Sinner’s serve is still a while off from making him a Grand Slam champion.
Prediction: Djokovic in 4
Damian:
Djokovic and Sinner played a five-setter at last year’s Wimbledon, but it was a bit more nuanced than that. After the Serbian lost the two opening sets, he was never really close to losing and broke in his opponent’s first service game in the next three. This matchup isn’t great for Sinner. In a way, he’s like a Rublev 2.0. Lots of linear power as well, but more dynamic and a better serve (that’s arguable though). The problem is that Djokovic is one of the absolute best in the world when it comes to absorbing pace. Lack of a transition game and/or useful variety make this rivalry so tricky for the Italian.
Prediction: Djokovic in 4
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Jordan:
Can anyone stop Djokovic? He hasn’t been beaten at Wimbledon since 2017. The positive for Sinner is he came closer than anyone has since Roger Federer in the 2019 final when he was two sets up against the seven-time champion last year. The Italian will need to serve at his absolute best, and have his hammer of a forehand working at its maximum. What worries me slightly is that Sinner has actually breezed through to the semifinals too easily with a relatively friendly draw. I think he needed to be a little more battle hardened to compete effectively with Djokovic for hours on grass. There will be entertaining hard hitting rallies, but I just don’t see Sinner causing the same number of problems as he did last year.
Prediction: Djokovic in 3
Andreas:
A rematch of their incredible Wimbledon quarterfinal last year, Sinner will go into this matchup with lots of lessons learned. Only problem is Djokovic is looking as good, if not better than last year’s tournament. Much of Sinner’s two sets-to love advantage last year came down to inconsistent tactics from the Serb. Yet, Sinner did play well in that match, firing on all cylinders with his serve. He solely lost due to the mental challenge and roadblocks interfering with him game; he was arguably the better player tennis-wise.
This exact scenario may repeat itself on Friday. Djokovic’s groundstrokes this tournament have lacked an authoritative pace compared to the French Open, and he’s been outplayed in many rallies. While Djokovic’s serve has been fantastic due to its placement, Sinner possesses a faster serve that can absolutely be used as a weapon. Ultimately, Sinner will be able to dominate most of the rallies, quickly winning the crowd over, and should win at least a set in this match. If Djokovic is rattled by the occasion and doesn’t serve great, Sinner can absolutely win this. Yet, I feel that the mental side of this match will be too much for the Italian to handle. Finally, Sinner hasn’t gone up against any Top 50 opposition this tournament; the increase in difficulty might be a challenge in the match’s early stages.
Prediction: Djokovic in 4
Manuel:
Djokovic has had some struggles in the last two rounds, but here he is still unbeaten at Slams this year, still with the Calendar Year Grand Slam in play and the clear favorite to win this tournament. Jannik Sinner hasn’t been able to win a big tournament so far in his career, consistently faltering in big matches, including last year’s Wimbledon quarterfinal against Djokovic himself after leading 2-0 in sets. He certainly has enough ability to pull off a big win like this and you have to imagine it will happen at some point. This might just be the day. He will at least make it a very tight contest, possibly decided by a few key points in tiebreaks.
Prediction: Sinner in 4
Jakub:
After the first set in their quarterfinal, where Rublev peaked at the exact right time to take it, Djokovic was not challenged much in the latter three sets. Same could be said of Sinner, who has not faced a seeded player en route to his first slam semifinal. Djokovic has won their two previous meetings but Sinner went two sets to love up on the Serb in the quarterfinals here last year. If the Italian continues to serve as well as he has throughout the tournament, he could provide a similar challenge to Hubert Hurkacz for Djokovic. Ultimately, I still see the seven-time Wimbledon coming through but this will be his toughest match yet.
Prediction: Djokovic in 5
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
